1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for examining living tissue of the type used, for example, to examine a female breast for tumors.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An apparatus known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,291,708, has an electrode arrangement which interacts electrically with the tissue to be examined. Also provided are means for applying current signals to the electrode arrangement and means for measuring potentials induced by the current signals in the tissue to be examined, which likewise cooperate with the electrode arrangement. The dielectric constants are determined for different regions of the breast from the measured values thus determined in order to be able to reach a conclusion as to the presence or absence of a tumor from the changes in the dielectric constants.
It is an advantage of this apparatus that it can operate without ionizing radiation and non-invasively. Experience with such apparatuses has shown, however, that sensitivity and specificity leave something to be desired in comparison with classic X-ray mammography.
Known mammography X-ray systems have an X-ray source, a radiation receiving arrangement disposed opposite the X-ray source, for X-rays emanating from the X-ray source, and a compression device, arranged between the X-ray source and the radiation receiver, for the tissue to be examined.